So the other day I fell down the rabbit hole, browsing pictures of celebrity homes on InStyle.com, and I came across Kelsey Grammer’s kitchen in the Hamptons. All I could think of was Frasier’s ultramodern (minus Dad’s hideous recliner) Seattle bachelor pad. Now some song about tossed salad and scrambled eggs is going through my head.

I love those tiles, that ceiling, the blue and white, the touches of rich wood and the overall lightness of this kitchen. It looks like you could transport it to Sweden and besides its huge size, no one would know it came from the far end of Long Island New York. It’s just shocking to see something so traditional from a guy who I will always associate with one of my first exposures to a fantasy modern luxury abode. Knowing how much everyone in Hollywood moves, he probably doesn’t even live in this house anymore. This was the only picture I could find online of Frasier’s kitchen:

Hmmm, there weren’t enough design blogs around when Frasier was actually on the air, it’s tough to find pictures of that kitchen. However, during my search, I’ve learned that his couch was an exact replica of Coco Chanel’s, that the set included a Chihuly sculpture that had to be locked up ever night after filming because it was worth $30,000, that one of the paintings was by Robert Rauschenberg, that there is an “I Hate Frasier Crane” site, that I can waste a lot of time ogling television set sites…I finally realized the only way to get a good shot of the kitchen was to buy the Season 1 DVD, which apparently has a tour led by set decorator Roy Christopher. Despite the great actors and my love for Cheers, I wasn’t a huge fan of Frasier (too much annoying bickering and canned laughter), but I may just have to buy that DVD for the 9-minute tour, it sounds fantastic.

I find set design so fascinating, especially when they completely nail the surroundings from a certain era. Mad Men takes place during such a transitional time, and it’s so much fun to see different influences showing up in the design. HereMad Men‘s set designer explains how this breakfront set the tone for the room and everything else followed it. LOVE this bar set…

…and this stereo:

Love what I think is purple grasscloth, the orange trim on the drapes…

The art is getting a bit more abstract. Oh, and I love that Betty doesn’t care a bit about the hearth being the heart of her home…

…so she covers it up with this fainting couch:

The decor is a major part of this show, and I’m so glad that this week’s episode really gave it its due.

I’ve said it before and I’ve said it again: If you ever need motivation to clean up your house, go rent the documentary Grey Gardens. If you want to see the HBO take on how it got to be such a mess, watch their version, as it provides that fantastic look to what the house looked like in its prime, and how it came to be covered with cat pee and newspapers a little bit at a time.

Over at HBO.com, they have some anorexic yet quality slides of the set design. They actually re-created the facade of the house in a few weeks:

Then they only had a few days to create the decayed version:

While they did not have a lot to go one, this is the recreated 1930’s version of the living room:

I was surprised to see so much deep purple.There was a wallpaper on The Barbizon set I simply must have and must share with you. I’ll leave you with this teaser while I go take pictures of my television screen and edit them!

One more thing, these set decorators and costume decorators were very meticulous. Remember when Edie would wear a tablecloth as a skirt in the 1970’s? They made sure that tablecloth was out on a table in the part taking place in the 1930’s. Nice.